Author: user user

The Senate minority bloc can also handle the powerful blue ribbon committee if the majority decides to offer it to them, Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano said Wednesday.

In a press conference, Cayetano said he does not want to be presumptuous, but the minority bloc could take on the committee.

‘It’s possible for the minority. In fact, if they give it to the minority, I’ll compare it to a coalition government. You know, now and then, when a president is elected but the vote was close, you take some government members from the opposing party,’ he said in Filipino.

‘It’s possible. I’m just not sure how comfortable they will be. If they offer it to the minority, we will discuss it, and then they will have the majority. But until they offer it, I will only consider it a coalition,’ he added.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III earlier named five senators as possible replacements for Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson as blue ribbon panel chairman.

Six senators have been mentioned as potential candidates to succeed Lacson, according to Sotto. He identified them as Sens. JV Ejercito, Raffy Tulfo, Francis ‘Kiko’ Pangilinan, Pia Cayetano, Risa Hontiveros, and Erwin Tulfo.

The majority bloc is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to discuss Lacson’s resignation.

Meanwhile, in a resignation letter dated Oct. 7 and addressed to Sotto, Lacson explained that several colleagues expressed disappointment with the ‘direction’ of the blue ribbon committee hearings regarding the anomalous flood control projects.

‘Some senators publicly and secretly pursue the narrative that I am zeroing in on several of my colleagues while purportedly protecting those members of the lower house perceived to be the principal actors in the budget anomalies related to the substandard and ghost flood control projects,’ said Lacson.

But according to him, nothing could be further from the truth.

‘This narrative is categorically false. These misrepresentations are being floated mostly by critics opposed to our efforts to get to the bottom of the flood control anomalies,’ he said. /mcm

Sen. Pia Cayetano is considering the chairmanship of the Senate’s powerful Blue Ribbon committee, adding that she will use the time during session break to ‘pray’ and ‘think’ about her decision.

Speaking to reporters in a press conference on Wednesday, Cayetano said it’s not easy to say yes to such a position, but because her name was ‘mentioned’ among possible successors to Sen. Panfilo Lacson,who earlier resigned from his post as the panel chair, she said it’s her job to consider it.

‘Whether I like it or not, it’s my job to consider it if there’s a need to chair the blue ribbon,’ said Cayetano.

‘Having said that, that job is heavy. I already have two other committees so I will use this time during session break to pray about it and think about it if I can handle it because I know I can. I have no doubt that I can do it. I have no doubt that I can do a good job with all humility,’ she added.

According to her, she wants the best person to handle the job because it is a ‘defining moment for the Filipino people.’

In fact, Cayetano said she told Senate President Vicente Sotto III about her decision to contemplate and pray about the offer during session break. She said the Senate chief agreed that there’s a need to pray about it.

Meanwhile, Cayetano said there’s no rush in deciding who the next blue ribbon chairperson will be since there is a vice chairperson who can take charge when the head is unavailable or in this case, resigned.

‘The vice chairperson can take charge so there is no urgency to appoint a permanent or new chairperson,’ she said.

Later, she said she admitted that she does not want to give up any of her committee if ever she takes up the Blue Ribbon panel. At present, Cayetano chairs the following panels:

Committee on energy

Committee on sustainable development goals, innovation and futures thinking

Committee on ways and means

Sen. Erwin Tulfo was earlier designated as the action chairperson of the Blue Ribbon panel.

In a separate statement also issued Wednesday, he said he is thankful for Sotto and his colleagues’ trust.

‘I am hoping that at the soonest time possible, we will be able to find and appoint a permanent chairman for this important committee,’ he said.

‘I am aware that many of our fellow Filipinos are hoping that this committee will investigate all who took advantage of the people’s money, whoever in the government may be involved,’ he added. /apl

In last week’s column (see ‘Learning languages, seeing realities,’ (10/01/25), I wrote about the 2025 Speak Dating event, where I got to both brush up on my languages and make new friends.

While awaiting our turn at the Ukrainian booth, I met a young professional who wants to learn languages because she is so interested in European politics. She could talk about European policies, Ursula von der Leyen and her work before she took leadership of the European Union, and the Russia-Ukraine war, which she connected to our conflicts with China in the West Philippine Sea from both economic and ideological standpoints.

I found myself having to dig through my memories, because my goodness, she could talk! I had met only very few people like her, and most of them are already faculty members in political science or international relations.

Her friends often criticized her as being too quiet, she said, almost exasperatedly; but she also said that she would rather remain silent than speak up and feign interest for a topic that she didn’t understand or like.

She wasn’t someone educated in what we often label as our top educational institutions, nor was she employed by a diplomatic office. She had a desk job, had come from a city university, and was simply eager to learn.

My fellow faculty members would call this grit. It’s what professors dream of when we interact with students, what thesis advisers love when they watch their advisees grow from student-hood to scholarship, what non-academic circles prize when they seek out new hires.

Some might lambast the idea of grit: that it glorifies long hours of work at the expense of one’s health, both physical and mental; that it encourages the growth of bad systems because it reduces people to their output; that it makes people workhorses rather than valued members of society.

The problem with this kind of thinking is that it equates grit with effort. There is no critical examination as to whether that effort is truly fruitful and efficient, or simply effort performed for the sake of showing that one is doing something.

We see this in our students when they negotiate their grades with us, and say that we didn’t see their ‘effort.’ Their output, however, shows that the process they went through wasn’t right: they did work at the last minute, didn’t move systematically from one idea to the next, were too focused on grades.

We have to keep reminding them that the A does not stand for ‘average.’ Rather, an A is given to those who can rival even our graduate students, who take risks and work beyond their comfort zones, who are unafraid of uncertainty, who can show that they have a broader understanding of the connections among disparate concepts.

Grit is not working hard per se. It’s showing that one is willing to put in the long hours of thinking and sorting out ideas, but is also willing to be criticized when those ideas fall flat. It is the ability to appreciate that not everyone will be gentle, or will speak your language, or will know how to cushion the blows of criticism. It is effort joined with humility. It is a willingness and flexibility to learn and unlearn.

Last week, my fellow professors and I echoed these sentiments as we went through strategy planning. We could only do so much planning, but if our students aren’t willing to make mistakes and to bounce back from them with renewed vigor, then our plans would amount to nothing.

As we discussed our ideal student, I couldn’t help going back to the young woman I met and conversed with at the language fair. I remember how she told me that she liked reading news and commentaries because there was just so much to know about the world, so much to discover in the mess of content.

A few days after the event, she found me on Facebook, and we’ve been chatting ever since.

She wants to take a graduate degree in international studies, with a focus on European politics, but she doesn’t know where to start. I’ve been coaching her on how to make connections between her current work and the field in which she wants to do research.

She has been eager to get back to school, even with her undergraduate degree and current job being in separate fields. She wants to teach after she graduates, but she is more interested in learning about a field she has always wanted to study-even if it means having to approach a whole other world with very few tools to go on.

I still have students who like to learn and are less fixated on their grades. But in these last few years, I’ve had more and more students despairing when they don’t get the grade they want, disengaging from difficult material when their first forays challenge their skills, or celebrating only their high grades but forgetting their lessons when they move to the next semester. Perhaps we can add a few more concepts to grit: a hunger to learn in the long term, a willingness to get dirty and messed up in an uncertain world. The kind of spirit that breeds leaders who are not afraid to condemn corruption. The kind of courage that makes citizens.

Hailing former President Rodrigo Duterte as a ‘pillar of law’ is a mockery to thousands of individuals who were killed in the drug war and lost a chance to defend their names in court, according to an organization of human rights lawyers.

Jojo Lacanilao, convener of the Concerned Lawyers for Liberties as well as the Duterte Panagutin Network, said the recognition given by the Davao chapter of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to Duterte as a ‘Golden Pillar of Law’ is an ’embarrassment to the legal profession’ as it honors a lawyer who has a track record of ignoring due process.

‘IBP Davao is an embarrassment to the legal profession by making this award and can make no justification for this unforced error. The only way they can rectify this wrong is to withdraw this award forthwith,’ the lawyer said when sought for comment.

A photo of the award with the name of Duterte on it had been making rounds on social media with Allan Panolong, IBP chair and national president, as its signatory.

ICC detention now justified

In the award, IBP thanked Duterte for its ’50 years of distinguished and dedicated service in the legal profession, upholding the ideals of justice, integrity and the rule of law, whether in private practice or public service.’

But Lacanilao opposed this, saying that Duterte, instead, is a ‘lawyer who had called for the killing of thousands without due process.’

He also stressed that such homage given to the former president, who is detained for murder charges in the International Criminal Court (ICC), only proves that he continues to hold ‘unbounded influence in important sectors of our society.’

‘If a regional group of lawyers is still hoodwinked by the guile of the former President, it demonstrates that any idea of sending him home for temporary release from the ICC detention is a dangerous one,’ Lacanilao stressed.

Human rights expert Carlos Conde slammed the IBP award on Duterte, saying: ‘Fanatics from Davao City are indeed bottomless.’

The Anti-Money Laundering Council has secured a fifth freeze order from the Court of Appeals under the ongoing flood control probe, bringing the total value of immobilized assets to over P4.4 billion.

The ongoing crackdown has so far frozen 1,632 bank accounts, 54 insurance policies, 163 motor vehicles, 40 real properties and 12 e-wallet accounts.

The latest freeze order covered several additional bank accounts, linked to persons-of-interests, notably including an entity whose license had been allegedly used in the implementation of ghost projects.

Securities and Exchange Commission chair Francis Lim, a member of the council, said, ‘The partnership sends a clear signal that corruption will not be tolerated.’

‘Fantasy films help us escape reality. But what if we reversed that? Let’s use fantasy to face reality, with a little more courage and a little smile.’

That’s how ‘Child No. 82: Son of Boy Kana’ director Tim Rone Villanueva explained the film’s unique approach to tackling fanaticism in the Philippines.

Starring JM Ibarra and Vhong Navarro, the film is an official entry to the 2025 Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival.

Set during the wake of an action-fantasy legend named Boy Kana (Navarro), the story follows Max (Ibarra), a teenager claiming to be the actor’s 82nd child. Before the wake ends, Max must prove his lineage, not just to the family, but to an entire fandom that believes it owns a piece of the man.

‘The idea came from my producer Arvin Belarmino,’ Villanueva shared. ‘We developed it from a simple question-what’s the point of view of a child out of wedlock? Who’s his father? Why is this so common in the Philippines?’

From research, the story found real roots. ‘We asked, who are the people who have many children? What powers do they seem to have? Then we realized, this also talks about fanaticism. So we thought, ‘why not use fantasy films?”

The twist, he said, was to flip the genre. ‘Ang fantasy films ginagamit para maka-escape tayo sa reality, pero baliktarin natin – tumakas tayo sa fantasy at harapin ang mga realidad ng buhay natin.’

Lead star JM Ibarra. Image: Marinel Cruz/INQUIRER.net

Vhong Navarro: Playing the myth and the man

For Navarro, playing Boy Kana – a beloved superhero and a flawed man – was an experience filled with awe.

‘When I was reading the script, marami akong katanungan pero nabuo lahat sa pelikula (I had so many questions, but everything came together in the film), he said. ‘Direk Tim is brilliant. I asked myself, how did he even conceptualize this?’

It was also his first Cinemalaya project. ‘That was one of the reasons I said yes,’ he added. ‘I’ve always wanted to make a Cinemalaya film – and this one turned out beautifully.’

As for what audiences should take away, he reflected: ‘The experiences of Boy Kana feel timely – political, being a father, being a superhero. What does it really mean to be one? Is it only on screen? In real life, maybe not.’

He pointed out that behind the film’s playful tone are deeper truths. ‘Naaliw ka kapag pinapanood mo, pero kapag inusisa mo – ang mga linya, ang background – may sinasabi sila na napapanahon.’ (You’re entertained while watching, but if you look closely – the lines, the background – they’re saying something relevant.) JM Ibarra: Finding confidence in doubt

For Ibarra, seeing himself as Max on the big screen was a mix of joy and nerves. ‘Until now, I’m still nervous,’ he told reporters during the Cinemaya film’s recent gala screening. ‘I’m happy people liked my performance, but I still ask myself, ‘Were they satisfied? Did I lack somewhere?”

One comment that stuck came from director Jose Javier Reyes. ”Di ko mabubura sa isip ko na napuri ako ni Direk Joey (I’ll never forget being praised by Direk Joey),’ he said. ‘It was remarkable because he’s the one who opened the door for me into acting when I got into the Meisner crash course at FDCP (FIlm Development Council of the Philippines, where he is chairperson).’

As for what’s next, he’s not slowing down. ‘Hangga’t ‘di pa sumasakit ang likod ko, tuloy lang (As long as my back doesn’t hurt yet, I’ll keep going),’ he joked. ‘I’ll never get tired of going back and forth between mainstream and indie – as long as I’m learning.’

Navarro was equally impressed. ‘I was surprised by what JM showed in the film,’ he said. ‘He doesn’t seem like a newcomer anymore. He observes everything. That’s how it should be.’ After Cinemalaya

Following the film’s Cinemalaya run, the team hopes to bring it to wider audiences. ‘We’re seeking help so that it can be distributed nationwide,’ Villanueva said. ‘We also have plans for international releases – and maybe a sequel.’

What gives the director the most joy, though, are comments from peers. ‘I didn’t expect that. It’s so heartwarming.’

Produced by Arvin Belarmino and Johndel Tacata, Child No. 82 also stars Rochelle Pangilinan, Kai Montinola, Iyah Mina and Ruth Ramos. The 2025 Cinemalaya runs until Oct. 12.

Defending champion National University rolled past Adamson, 69-51, for its second straight victory in the UAAP Season 88 women’s basketball tournament Wednesday at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.

Coming off a 95-58 rout of University of the Philippines, the Lady Bulldogs imposed control early behind Ann Pingol and Tin Cayabyab to build a 43-23 halftime lead-a cushion Adamson couldn’t erase.

The win pushed NU to solo third with a 3-1 record at the halfway mark of the first round.

‘We’re happy with the win, but this is probably not our best game,’ said NU coach DA Olan, whose team was outrebounded, 56-43. ‘There’s still a lot of room for improvement, especially in controlling the boards. We struggled again in that area.’

Adamson tried to rally in the third quarter behind Elaine Etang and Kem Adeshina, trimming the gap to 50-37. But Marga Villanueva buried back-to-back triples to restore a 19-point lead at 56-37.

The Lady Falcons made another push in the fourth before NU answered with three consecutive treys from Aloha Betanio, Marylene Solis, and Cayabyab to seal the win.

Pingol led NU with 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting, 11 rebounds, seven assists, four steals, and two blocks. Cayabyab added 13 points and six rebounds, while Villanueva chipped in 11.

Etang paced Adamson with 13 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two assists. Cheska Apag added 10 points as the Lady Falcons slipped to 1-3.

NU faces De La Salle University next on Sunday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion, while Adamson meets University of the East on Saturday at the Ateneo Blue Eagle Gym.

Tab Baldwin talked about the choice between discussing the first three quarters of basketball that Ateneo displayed against La Salle or that one quarter when everything went south.

‘We’ll do both in the confines of our dugout and in our next practice [and] in the video session,’ he said last Sunday after an 81-74 victory over La Salle in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament.

‘I think that the contrast between the first three [quarters] and the fourth is so stark that coaches often talk about opportunities to learn for their team and I don’t think anybody in our organization has gotten any doubts that we have a lot to learn from what happened in the fourth quarter.’

The Blue Eagles looked like they would cruise to a fourth straight victory in as many games but eventually had to gut out the victory.

‘That phrase just sticks in my throat to even say [after] you’re up . 33 or something like that, to say we pulled it out,’ Baldwin said. ‘I won’t sleep well Monday night, I’m sure, as we really start to reflect on this and prepare for UP.’

Ateneo plays University of the Philippines on Wednesday.

For the season, Ateneo has consistently started out strong, only to falter in the second half.

Even with the wild turnaround against La Salle in the final two periods and the strong finish in the Eagles’ victory over the Adamson Falcons, Ateneo’s plus-minus in each half goes from +9.2 in the first two quarters to -2.2 in the last two.

That might be the case for most teams, as efficiency reasonably always goes down as the game progresses because fatigue starts to creep in, but it might be doubly troubling for a squad that has relied heavily on its perimeter game this season.

Ateneo averages 76.5 points per game this season, No. 2 behind University of Santo Tomas, according to stats provided by Piong Ducanes and the UAAP Stats Group. The Eagles are drawing 38.5 points (50.3 percent) of that from the perimeter, anchored on a league-best makes (36) and percentage (34.6) from beyond the arc.

Poor paint job

Ateneo has struggled inside, ranking seventh in points in the paint at 23 in the game, which the Eagles try to make up at the stripe, where they are No. 2 at 15 made free throws per game.

So when the Eagles face the Maroons on Wednesday at Mall of Asia Arena after the 2 p.m. duel between the NU Bulldogs and the Adamson Falcons, the question will be if Baldwin’s squad can sustain their strong starts.

It’s a question made urgent by the fact that UP is one of the more physical defenses in the league, something that Baldwin made sure to point out.

‘We know that you piece is gonna it’s gonna be a rugged game,’ Baldwin said. But UP isn’t the only one playing solid defense. Ateneo is best at field goals allowed, yielding just 36.96 percent this season-No. 1 in the league. That’s a big turnaround from last season, where the Katipunan squad ranked last, allowing 41.4 percent. INQ

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has affirmed that it is expediting the construction of relocation sites in Naic, Cavite, designated for families affected by the construction of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said 12 of the 82 three-storey buildings are expected to be completed by December this year.

It added that the 12 buildings can provide housing for 360 families affected by the project.

The funds to be spent for the 82 three-story buildings under the Social Housing Finance Corp. will come from the DOTr.

DOTr Assistant Secretary for Right-of-Way and Site Acquisition IC Calaguas and Naic City Administrator Rodolfo Uy III visited the relocation site and assured that it is complete with facilities.

They also ensured that the site has a school, day care centers, rural health centers, and covered courts.

The DOTr is also set to visit a relocation site for residents affected by the NSCR project in Angeles City, Pampanga, this week.

The 190-kilometer NSCR project from Clark, Pampanga to Calamba, Laguna, is set to be finished by 2032.

Lee Chae-min has nothing but praise for his ‘Bon Appetit, Your Majesty’ leading lady Im Yoon-ah, whom he hopes to meet again in a future project.

Lee and Im (also known as Yoona) are the lead stars of the historical drama ‘Bon Appetit, Your Majesty,’ which tells the story of French cuisine chef Yeon Ji-young (Im), who time-slips into the King Lee Heon-led Joseon Dynasty (Lee). It was a domestic and international success, hitting the double-digit mark during the time of its airing – a rare feat for cable dramas in South Korea.

In an interview with Korean media outlet BizEnter, Lee – who has been vocal about being a fan of the actress-singer – revealed that he confessed to his leading lady that he wanted to meet her again.

‘I confessed to my senior Yoona, ‘I hope we can meet again someday, in some kind of relationship or with some kind of role, and film together,” he was quoted as saying.

‘I learned a lot throughout filming and I’m grateful. Yoona approached me first and I was able to immerse myself comfortably, and the experience of exchanging ideas with each other and having fun on set was a great help,’ he said. Season 2?

In a separate interview with TenAsia, Im said she was open to doing a second season of the hit series – as long as she would do it with the original cast.

‘I haven’t heard anything about a second season yet. I guess we’ll know when we hear about it, but if the story continues and all the actors can come together again, I’d love to do it,’ she said.

The Girls’ Generation member is nonetheless satisfied with how ‘Bon Appetit, Your Majesty’ turned out.

‘I think it’s the ending everyone dreams of. I think it’s a beautiful ending. I’m surprised every day and every week because of the good ratings every episode. I didn’t have any specific expectations because the ratings were out of my control, but I never expected such a huge response,’ she said.

Meanwhile, Lee said if ever there’s a season two, he wants the story to show King Lee Heon adjusting to modern life.

While the hit drama ended with Ji-young and Lee Heon’s emotional reunion, there was no explanation of how the South Korean ruler was able to time-travel to the present.

‘I saw reactions like, ‘Will there be a season 2?’ and I thought, that means people really enjoyed it. I did get curious, like, ‘What would it be like if we did season 2?,” he said. ‘I even imagined something like Lee Heon adjusting to modern life. But still, I think Lee Heon’s story is meant to end in the historical setting.’

The drama, which is streaming on Netflix, also stars Kang Han-na, Choi Gwi-hwa, Yoon Seo-ah, Kim Kwang-kyu, and Seo Yi-sook, to name a few.